Virtual Programs Covid-19 2020-2021

- Religious Education
  - Virtual Programs Covid-19 2020-2021
Option #1
Virtual Summer program
2 week program for all students
July 6- July 17th
The program is 5 half days for 2 weeks

Most families should be able to finish their lessons in under 2 hours each day.

There will be 8 modules with 3 sections in each.
- M-Th curriculum
- Friday mornings Mass live streamed and a Church tour or Stations of the cross followed with a Google form with 4 questions about the morning
- Lessons posted 9am and stay live until 8pm each day
There are no family days 2020-2021
- There will be a family Mass on the last weekend of each month.
  - Families attend any of the St Benedict Masses
  - Meet and greet with teachers afterwards in the gathering space.
  - Take home Faith and Family packet for the upcoming month.
- Families will be asked to come to reconciliation once during Advent and once during Lent (dates TBD)
- There will be 2 virtual parent nights TBD
option #2
Virtual Yearly program
8 Months beginning in October and Ending in May
- 1 module each month containing 3 sections.
  - Each section will take no more than 30-40 minutes
- Lessons will be posted and stay live The first Monday of the month and close the last day of the month.
There will be a family Mass weekend the last weekend of each month.
- Families attend any of the St Benedict Masses
  - Meet and greet with teachers afterward in the gathering space.
  - Take home Faith and Family packet for the upcoming month.
Families will be asked to come to reconciliation once during Advent and once during Lent (dates TBD)
- There will be 2 virtual parent nights TBD

Summer Academy and Traditional (scroll down)

Because of Covid19 and restricted gathering, St Benedict Church will only be offering virtual programs for the 2020-2021 academic year. This is not home-study but a virtual program taught by staff and teachers.

Parents can choose between two options. Summer or Traditional
Please let us know by June 10th, 2020

Summer Academy:
July 6- July 17th
The program is 5 half days for 2 weeks
We will digitize 25 lessons per grade over the next month and are making sure that the students will be able to navigate the sites easily without too much assistance.

We understand that schedules are changing; wifi and devices might be an issue also. Because of that, we are not teaching live. We will be recording and posting the lessons daily.

Depending on the age of your child, your support should be all they need- the teaching will be done by staff.
- Families will have all day to complete the lessons.
- Staff and teachers will be available for questions.
- The programs will be entirely virtual and there will be nothing send in.
- Assessments will be done through games or online quizzes. Once completed they are submitted automatically to your child's teacher.
We are purchasing virtual books for each child that will be on their classroom page of the Catholic Brain site as a flip-book. We purchased Catholic Brain because it has a vast amount of curriculum that syncs to the books.
- Your children will be sent an individual login and password with instructions closer to the start date. Parents will also have a login and we will have instructions via a video or zoom webinar with navigation details.
- There will be a pickup day the week before we begin for craft packets and some fun items for your children.
There is an app for Catholic Brain so that families can complete lessons on the go. The app and that flexibility may make the yearly model something to think about even if you had already registered for Summer Academy.

Why 2 weeks of half days?

From our conversations with families, teachers, and our own experience this spring working and teaching our own children; sitting all day in front of a screen may not be effective and is a burden.

We want your children to have a good experience even though they are at home. The work should be easy to complete in just a couple of hours and then the rest of your day is free.

Outline for the Day:
1. A recorded welcome and opening prayer
2. Watch daily video, saint and quiz/game (10 min)
3. 1 module a day with 3 lessons in each (lessons will average approximately 30 minutes or less)
4. A closing prayer, video, and 'exit ticket'.(10 min)
Lessons will post at 9 am daily and stay open until 8 pm. You will have all day to complete the module.
- Monday through Thursday will be curriculum
- Fridays will be our live community time. Families attend the daily live stream of Mass on YouTube and then stay live for approximately 30 -45 minutes
- Week 1-Stations of the Cross & week 2 Church tour. Children will go to Google classroom and answer an exit ticket.
Our hope is that Fridays are fun and quick.

Family Days vs Family Mass Weekend

We have put a lot of prayer and thought into what your children are missing. One of the strongest aspects of St Benedict's and the programs is the community. Our family days are exposure to the faith community and the life of the church. Those events celebrate feasts and celebrations of the liturgical calendar.

Unfortunately, we do not think that there is enough information in regards to gathering guidelines for the fall that would allow the church to hold large events. Family days for this year's program are suspended.

But the importance of community is still there. We are fairly certain based on phases proposed by the Diocese that Masses will be allowed by the end of September.

The family Mass weekend will be the last weekend of each month beginning in September. They are meant for families to see one another and connect with teachers. You may attend any of the Masses that weekend, there will not be specific one assigned.

Each month we will send you home with a Faith and Family packet with prayer ideas, crafts for different liturgical feasts, and more.

This is all subject to gathering guidelines as they are released.

What if you are exhausted from the last couple of months and do not want to stay in the summer program?

Transferring to the Traditional model with one module (3 sessions) a month is an option.

Click Here to Transfer

Traditional Model Information:

The traditional model allows for more flexibility than the summer.
- 1 Module will post the first Monday of each month. 3 sessions will be available and stay live until the last day of the month.
- You may complete the lessons in a time frame that is comfortable for your family.
- The app from Catholic Brain might be good for families on the run.
- Families are asked to attend the family Mass weekend as well for the same liturgical and community reasons mentioned above.
When do we register for the Traditional Program if we were not signed up for Summer Academy?

June 1st we will send out a link and the registration will be live on the website.
- We will be adding an adaptive shorter program for 1st-grade students online.
- 8th grade and 1st-grade students can register then as well.
Cost:

There is a price difference between the Traditional program and Summer Academy.
- Families who switch from Summer Academy to the Traditional model will be given a discount in the amount of the difference between the 2 programs when they register for the 2021 Summer Academy
- 7th-grade students who have already registered, your cost for 8th grade will be discounted the difference between the two programs.
Additional Information
- Second-grade students will have 4 Sacramental Prep sessions- They will most likely be online but hopefully by spring be able to come for Gathering Day and FHC practices
- We will be adding a shortened adapted program for 1st-grade students.
- Students with a learning plan that make online programs challenging; once we have Summer Academy up online we will email out to see how we can adapt the program for your children.
- Please continue to check the weekly updates.
Confirmation Program:

7th Grade moves back to the Traditional model.
Your children are registered. You do not need to do anything.
8th-grade parents, see registration information below.

Because the 7th and 8th grade use a different curriculum from the summer academy students and we may need to make the program virtual, we put the 7th back with the 8th grade.

If life were 'normal', the kids would attend 2 monthly meetings on Sunday evenings. We may not be able to do hold the program the same way this year. Depending on State guidelines for fall, the program may be run entirely through virtual classes or a hybrid of half virtual and half in person.

The program is taught by a youth ministry model. Community is an important component of that program. Because this is so important, we are waiting to make a final decision making the program virtual until the first week of August.

We will send out updates as we have more information